


[Untitled]

by valda



Category: Welcome to Night Vale
Genre: Borderline Personality Disorder, Carlos is a Good Boyfriend, Cecil's Fashion Sense, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Misunderstandings
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-06-08
Updated: 2015-06-08
Packaged: 2018-04-03 11:25:50
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,254
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4099270
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/valda/pseuds/valda
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Carlos would never intentionally hurt Cecil.</p>
            </blockquote>





	[Untitled]

**Author's Note:**

  * For [OrdinaryBird](https://archiveofourown.org/users/OrdinaryBird/gifts).



> It is impossible to properly title this story.

When Carlos answers the knock at the lab door, Cecil is standing there smiling shyly, clasping his hands behind his back. He's wearing a green silk sheath dress with a mandarin collar, a diagonal line of buttons down the front and a large oval cutout on one side. A thick border of mauve faux feathers outlines the broad patch of bare skin that starts just below his arm and curves down to reveal his hipbone. Violently pink leggings with a symmetrical pattern of purple cacti emerge from the angled, jagged hem of the dress and descend to a pair of brown Crocs with orange trim. Accessories include a diamond stud earring, an impressive layering of gold and silver necklaces, a woven sunhat, and an orange clutch that matches the trim on the shoes; the dress, of course, does not have pockets.

He's bouncing lightly on the balls of his feet, and he's absolutely adorable, and Carlos grins and leans in to kiss his nose. "I'm all done here and ready to eat. Shall we?" he asks, offering his arm. Cecil wraps himself around it, perhaps a little more tightly than usual, and they stroll together across the parking lot toward Big Rico's.

The pizza place has new signage, and, working next door, Carlos has had to look at it every day for a week. It's mysteriously unnerving; out of the corner of his eye, it seems to move in roiling, ever-expanding circles, threatening to consume all it touches, but of course all it does when he looks straight at it is flicker and growl menacingly.

Carlos shakes his head. "It's so _ugly_ ," he says with a laugh.

Cecil doesn't join in on the laughter. His grip on Carlos' arm slackens a bit. "Yeah," he says quietly. "It's. I just. I thought it was okay."

Carlos trips on nothing, stumbles, hops a little to regain his footing. He blinks, stops walking, and turns to Cecil. His boyfriend is picking at his lower lip and staring at the ground.

"Um," Carlos says, and there is a sudden tightening in his chest as an unwelcome hypothesis slowly forms. "The new Big Rico's sign is what's ugly..."

Cecil looks up then, and Carlos can see the pain in his eyes. It fades, but only slightly. Cecil lets his hand fall away from his lip, looks away again, and says, "Oh."

_No_ , Carlos thinks, his gut going heavy and cold. _No, no, no_. His lips move, and the words come out brokenly. "No." He reaches up, lays his palm against Cecil's cheek. "No, baby. No. You thought--you thought I meant your outfit."

"Yes," Cecil replies, a hollow crispness to his voice. "Well. It's one of those days."

" _Sweetheart_ ," Carlos says, only it comes out all choked, dampened by the thickness that has filled his chest. He puts his arms around Cecil and drags him close. "Oh gods, Cecil, I am so sorry. I am so sorry. You--you always dress so well, and you look so _good_ , but you thought--you thought--you didn't just think I didn't like it, you thought I _hated_ it--"

Cecil is stiff in his embrace, arms ramrod straight at his sides. Carlos squeezes tighter. His mind is reeling. He can only imagine how he would feel if Cecil told him something he had worked hard on was ugly or stupid. Especially something he'd done with the hopes of impressing Cecil.

Worse yet, now Cecil won't even believe that Carlos likes the outfit. He'll think Carlos is just trying to comfort him. And while that's true--Carlos is trying to comfort him--it's _also_ true that Carlos absolutely loves the ensemble. It's so perfect. It's so Cecil.

All he can do is say so, even though he's terrified it won't be enough.

"I should have told you right away," he murmurs into Cecil's ear. "How much I like what you're wearing. How good you are at picking outfits. You are so creative, so brilliant. This dress, and those leggings, and that hat--it's just so amazing. It all suits you so well. I was so happy when I saw you, when I saw how nice you looked. I kissed your nose, remember? But...I should have said something."

"Not your fault," Cecil says, his voice flat.

Carlos rubs at Cecil's back, hoping the touch is comforting, shaking his head in awe that despite the hurt he's fighting, Cecil is worried about _Carlos_ ' feelings. "Oh, sweetheart," he says softly. "Sweet Cecil. I love you, and I love how you dress, and I love how you look."

Cecil draws a shuddery breath and pushes his face into Carlos' shoulder, and Carlos closes his eyes at the hot, damp contact. He slides one hand up to stroke at Cecil's hair, leaving the other hand to continue rubbing his boyfriend's back.

Dinner out at Big Rico's is not what Cecil needs right now, and standing in the middle of the parking lot isn't so great either. After a moment Carlos slides his arm down to Cecil's waist and presses gently, suggesting by touch that they turn back toward the lab and their cars. "Here, baby, come on, let's go home."

Cecil allows himself to be guided to Carlos' hybrid. Carlos settles him in and gives him a lingering kiss on the cheek before closing the door and slipping in on the driver's side. The car's an automatic, so Carlos holds Cecil's hand the whole way back to their house.

He sets Cecil up on the couch with a huge pile of pillows and blankets and a glass of water, then turns on _Cat Ballou_. "I'll just be in the kitchen making dinner," he says, running his fingers back through the hair at Cecil's temple. "Okay?"

Cecil nods, hunched over and clutching the blankets around himself. He doesn't meet Carlos' eyes. Carlos kisses his forehead and heads to the kitchen.

He could make just about anything--they have plenty of groceries, the purpose of going to Big Rico's tonight had simply been to get out of the house--but he figures he should fix something quick so he's available to Cecil. There's some leftover tomato soup; he puts it in a pot to warm on the stove and sets to work on some sandwiches to go with. It's not long before he's carrying a plate and a bowl to Cecil, then making a quick trip back to the kitchen for his own servings.

Carlos settles tentatively onto the couch, close enough that Cecil could snuggle in if he wanted, but not so close as to pressure him into doing so. Cecil hasn't taken a bite yet. Carlos sits back with his bowl of soup and starts eating, glancing at Cecil every now and then. Finally, after he's had ten bites and Cecil has still had none, he says, "You should eat."

"Yeah," Cecil says. He doesn't move.

"Do you want me to feed you?"

"No." Cecil sounds offended, which Carlos had sort of been going for, hoping it would irritate his boyfriend into eating his dinner himself. Unfortunately, the plan seems to have backfired; Cecil pulls the blankets more tightly around himself and stares at the TV.

Carlos isn't sure if Cecil needs him to say something or needs him to be quiet, and he isn't sure if he should ask. He decides to concentrate on his soup for now. He's finished the bowl and is reaching for his sandwich when Cecil finally speaks.

"I just got it today," he says. And then, "It wasn't even on sale. Or anything."

Carlos abandons the sandwich, turns to face Cecil. "Are you worried because it was expensive?"

Cecil sighs, nods. "I...I really wanted you to like it. I was so afraid you wouldn't. I really wanted it. But I can't return it."

"Please don't!" Carlos says immediately. "I want to see you wear it again and again."

"I'm sorry," Cecil says. "I messed up our whole evening."

"Hey. We're together, aren't we? We're having a nice dinner? And watching our movie? Seems like a good evening to me."

"I just...always do this. I'm so stupid."

"Cecil." Carlos takes his boyfriend's face in his hands. "You're not stupid. I don't know, maybe it's hard to believe that right now, but you're not." He leans in for a light kiss on the mouth. "I love you."

Cecil finally starts eating. They finish the movie, and Cecil stays huddled in his nest of pillows and blankets, scrolling through cat photos on Tumblr until it's time for bed.

In the darkness of their bedroom, Carlos watches until Cecil falls asleep. It takes a while, but eventually his boyfriend's breathing is slow and even. Carlos gazes at Cecil's face and despairs that he hurt this gentle, beautiful, brilliant person, even inadvertently.

His heart swells with emotions he has felt since the day he first fell into those gorgeous eyes and drowned in that deep voice--passion, protectiveness, respect, need--deeper now, grown richer and more nuanced as he's come to know more and more about the incredible person with whom he shares a bed, a home, a life.

Carlos doesn't always know what to do. But he does know that he is in love.

~

A few weeks pass before Carlos gets up the nerve to ask. When he does, it's on a slow, lazy Sunday. They have few plans, and other than a quick pop out for coffee and pastries, they've done little but quietly putter in their respective spheres--Carlos performing scientific tests on household items, Cecil consulting various oracles for news tips.

"Honey," Carlos says, and Cecil looks up from where he's been tapping away at the Eternal Mysteries of the Unknown app on his phone. "Do you--do you remember that green dress?"

Cecil smiles, or maybe grimaces. He looks slightly embarrassed. "Yeah," he says.

"Would you--would you maybe put it on for me?"

Cecil sets his phone down. "Really?"

Carlos feels his smile going shy. He scratches at the back of his head. "I've been dying to see it again," he confesses.

Cecil shoots up from the couch and practically bolts to their bedroom, promising over his shoulder, "I'll be _right back_."

When Cecil emerges a few minutes later in the complete ensemble, stepping out into the living room and doing a little twirl, Carlos can't stop grinning--not that he wants to. He crosses the room and sweeps Cecil into a kiss. "Thank you," he says softly. Cecil ducks his head and smiles.

Stepping back, Carlos puts his hands on Cecil's shoulders and gives the outfit an appraising look. "Yes," he says, "this is _very_ nice. Do you want me to tell you what I like about it?"

"Please do!" Cecil says, looking delighted.

"Well, first of all, this collar. You know how I like the hollow of your throat, and your collarbone, but this collar is so high. It doesn't let me see them. I don't see the base of your throat at all. It makes me want it more." Carlos leans in and licks lightly just under the edge of the collar.

Cecil shudders gently. "Oh," he puffs out.

"I like the buttons," Carlos says. "I can imagine unbuttoning this dress all the way, unwrapping you like a present." He kisses up to Cecil's ear, nibbles around the diamond stud. "I like this, too," he remarks. "A single beautiful jewel. Just like you."

It's horribly cheesy, and Cecil laughs and swats his arm. Carlos pulls back to look at him, and they smile at each other.

"And let's see," Carlos continues in his most scientific voice, raking his eyes down Cecil's body, "then there's those leggings, and how nicely they show your legs off. I can see everything." He glances back up at Cecil through his eyelashes. "Every little curve and dimple that I love."

Carlos settles to his knees, sliding his hands up the backs of Cecil's calves. Cecil responds with a gratifying groan. "I like that the dress is cut at an angle like this, and that it's not a straight line either, so even more of your legs show," Carlos says. He bends down to nose at Cecil's thigh, at the spot where the hem gives way to the leggings. "But you know what my favorite part is?"

He looks up to see Cecil biting his lip and shaking his head. "This," Carlos says, and he leans forward to suck at Cecil's hipbone, left bare by the large cutout oval on the right side of the dress. " _Ugh_ ," he huffs against Cecil's skin, "this is _so hot_."

His hands roam up Cecil's legs, slipping over his ass and coming forward to grip low on his hips as he continues to suck and lick the bare skin. "I've been thinking about this for _so long_ ," he murmurs. "You look so good. I want to take you out in this outfit and show you off to everyone, let everyone see how beautiful you are. And I want to think about getting you _out_ of this outfit the whole time. And then I want to bring you home and do everything I've been thinking about all night."

Cecil buries his hands in Carlos' hair, presses his hip gently but firmly against Carlos' mouth. "That could--be arranged," he says, breathily. "Take me to dinner, Carlos?"

Carlos lets out a delirious yet satisfied huff, kissing a long, winding trail over Cecil's exposed skin. "Yes, yes, _absolutely_."


End file.
